Uber’s promo factory has delivered kittens, Christmas trees and ice cream. But its latest PR concoction has taken the Valley darling to a whole new level: Uber for VC meetings.
UberPITCH will give free rides to to anyone with a startup idea, allowing them to pitch investors from the Google Ventures team. Yes, that’s right. If you’ve got a great idea for an anonymous photo sharing app that lets you swipe up to get laid, you’ve got transportation.
This is obviously a marketing stunt, and to make it even frothier, Google Ventures is Uber’s most recent backer. While we doubt that the GV team will find the next Uber through this, anything is possible*. In the end, there really isn’t anything more Silicon Valley than investors using a portfolio company’s product to let other wannabe founders pitch them.
Tomorrow, anyone with a startup pitch or idea can open Uber in Palo Alto, Mountain View or Menlo Park from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Similar to the way you can choose between UberX, Black Car and SUV, these users will be able to select UberPITCH and request a ride. If connected, they will have seven minutes to pitch and seven minutes for feedback. The UberX or UberSUV car will actually roll up with a GV investor in the backseat, and the ride starts and ends back at their starting point. Rides will be free for users.
So who will you be pitching at Google Ventures? GV’s UberPITCH team includes Uber investor David Krane, General Partner; Shanna Tellerman, Partner; Andy Wheeler, General Partner; Dave Munichiello, Partner; and Rick Klau, Product Partner. Former TechCrunch columnist and current Google Ventures partner MG Siegler will not be part of the program.
*At least one cab investment turned out to be a good call, as Baydin makes some pretty great email tools, including the Boomerang scheduling service.